I am wondering how to put my DS in a ring sling? I have tried it a few times and it is just not working. This is my first experience w/babywearing and I really want it to work. He is 3 wks old and about 9#. Any suggestions?

His feet should go toward the rings. I will look for a link for you and edit and add it. What kind of sling do you have?

You can always get great help at this site too:www.thebabywearer.com
You will have to open an account(free) but there is a wealth of info there. Look under the using a babycarrier topic list and you can ask questions and read, read, read...

I would second the suggestion to go to thebabywearer.com. There is just so much great info on there! There is specifically a section dedicated just to tips for using slings under the choosing & using a pouch or ring sling topic. But the cradle hold is definitely what you're needing to learn. They will look squished probably, from my experience. And you want to turn them so they're tummy 2 tummy with you. One tip I really appreciated too was when you're adjusting, insert your right hand from underneath (if it's draped over right shoulder). It definitely makes adjusting easier! HTH some! Don't give up, it's worth the struggle of learning!

One more thing - you can look online to find a local NINO meeting (babywearing group) and attend. There are moms ready to help others who want to learn to babywear.

Here is a link to a video. There are a couple of parts about newborn positions.
You might also try bringing it to your LLL meeting- there are probably mamas there who can help you in person.
Good luck with it! It took me a while to figure out how to use my RS, but once I did, I LOVED it! My 3 yr old still likes to be carried in it once in a while.

i agree, keep at it, it took me a few days to really understand how to use my rs, i love wearing it over my right shoulder, it feels more comfy to me., and i used to put my baby either way to the rings and never had any problems, i know back carry her with my rs and have no problems.
check out the baby wearer and goodluck

I bought my ring sling from a local store, and I kept going back for help! If you can take it to a LLL meeting or to some other mama who knows how to sling, that's the best. Anyway, just keep at it - it takes practice. You probably need to keep it tighter than you would think....that was my problem in the beginning, I would start with it too loose, and then when I kept trying to adjust it I just made the babe mad, and stressed myself out. So start with it pretty tight, before you ever put the baby in.

I really loved the sling once I got the hang of it....it's so adjustable and versatile as they grow. But there's definitely a learning curve to it, and the biggest thing is to get help (which you're obviously doing) and not give up.

Get your rings a bit high on your shoulders and have just enough extra in your pouch to get your baby in- thus you want you pouch a bit bigger than you want it when you pull your tether. It takes a few times of doing it to know where you like it on your shoulder. also I like mine more toward the outside of my shoulder and not pulling in toward my neck.

Now then here is the biggest part that most people do wrong. They do not set up the pouch and end up with way too much extra fabric.

So what you want to do i have most of the extra fabrix gathered toward the inside of your body. This way when you put your baby in it, the outter edge will be where you want it . Also I found it very odd to wear by baby with their head down, I always have the head on the same side as the rings.

So put it on with rings hitting just barely tilting toward the front of your shoulder. creat your pouch that you will put the baby in with the extra fabric gathered toward the inside of the pouch. Lay your baby in your created pouch and pull your tether to tightened your rails.

If you want to try a t2t- which for some people is easier. You do the same thing only you want a bi more fabric so that when you put the baby in you can get everything adjusted right. Create the pouch put baby in feet first adjust top rail to where you want the head support and make sure the gather of the rest of the fabric is under the bum (feet can be in or our- with this small of a baby I do in but again the extra fabric is under the bum area) then you just pull your tether.

Hope that helps- I wish I had pics ... actually you know on my wrapping pics you do the pouch the same way so if you can't find good r-sling pics let me know and send me your e-mail and I can send you the pouch part of my newborn wrapping instructions...
Minda

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